If you are hurting inside, or if life just doesnt seem to be working... you dont have to just sit there and suffer.

You do have a choice: you can choose to get help.

How can I find a good counselor or psychotherapist?

How do I know if my counselor is competent?

What is supposed to happen in therapy?

Can a therapist be incompetent without me realizing it?

Is a psychologist the best therapist? Does a license make a difference?

If you have asked yourself any of these questions, this article is for you. It is a consumers guide for anyone who is considering professional counseling and wants to know how to go about it. I hope to show you how to choose a professional counselor who is likely to be able to help you, and how to avoid those who are not.

Why is this article different? Because I am not working for a therapist; I am working for you. I am not biased toward any particular profession and no one is paying me to write this article. I have no agenda other than your well-being.

You see, Find-A-Therapist articles are usually marketing tools. They are often written by professional associations, who want you to find a member of their association; or by therapists who are advertising their services. Both are biased. Some are written by consumers in a well-meaning but ultimately fruitless attempt to decipher the confusing array of academic degrees, licenses and certifications of therapists. (Why fruitless? Keep reading.)

But since a degree, and even a license, may not guarantee the effectiveness of a counselor, this article will show you how to evaluate the true competence and effectiveness of a therapist or counselor based on very simple evidence YOU can gather with your own eyes and ears.

No one, including me, has a monopoly on good advice, and I encourage you to consider several opinions in addition to mine (I will refer you to some others at the end of this article); but I hope you will find this information helpful.